The Daffodils – I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud

"I wandered lonely as a cloud" must rank as one of the most famous lines of poetry in the English language. It was written by William Wordsworth in 1802 after one of his many walks in the England's Lake District. It's a lovely poem to listen to when Spring is on its way. And it's also one that might appeal to you if you are getting in the mood for Wales's patron saint, St. David, whose celebration falls on March 1st, because Daffodils are closely associated with Wales. You can hear our story of St. David here.

And don't miss Natasha's thoughts on the poem here. She writes these "Post Recording Reviews" shortly after the recordings when the impressions of the stories or poems are still fresh in her mind.

Kindly sponsored by the The Center for Guided Montessori Studies

Read by Natasha. Duration 4.47.

I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretch'd in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Afterthought

Bertie has asked me to tell you that a phrase like , “I wondered lonely as a cloud” is called a simile, because it finds something similar in two different things. In this case it’s saying that both the poet and a cloud are “lonely”. You can also imagine a picture of a gentle cloud floating over the hills. Perhaps you can guess that the poet is in a dreamy mood with his “head in the clouds” which is why he is all the more surprised when suddenly sees the colourful crowd of of daffodils.

Similes often have the word “like” or “as” in them. For instance there’s another simile in the line

Continuous as the stars that shine

Anyway, where ever you are in the world, whether it’s spring or autumn, or Summer or Winter, you can always drop by at Storynory.com for free stories and poems.